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Zachary David Thompson (born October 28, 1997) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.
In 2017, as a freshman at Kentucky, Thompson appeared in twenty games (13 starts) in which he went 8–3 with a 3.45 ERA. As a sophomore in 2018, Thompson missed nearly two months due to an elbow injury. He appeared in nine games, making seven starts, going 2–1 with a 4.94 ERA. That summer, Thompson played in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Brewster Whitecaps and also played for the USA Baseball. Prior to the 2019 season, Thompson was named to the Preseason All-SEC First Team. He was named the SEC Pitcher of the Week on April 1 after throwing a complete-game shutout against the Georgia Bulldogs in which he struck out 13 batters while allowing only two hits. Thompson finished his junior year with a 6-1 record and a 2.40 ERA over 14 starts, striking out 130 batters in ninety innings, earning a spot on the All-SEC Second Team.
Thompson did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the 2021 minor league season began, he participated in spring training with the major league club. Afterwards, Thompson was assigned to the Memphis Redbirds of the Triple-A East, appearing in 22 games (19 starts) in which he went 2-10 with a 7.06 ERA, 82 strikeouts, and 57 walks over 93 innings. Thompson was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League (AFL) for the Glendale Desert Dogs after the season where he was named to the Fall Stars Game. Over innings pitched during the AFL, Thompson went 3-0 with a 1.56 ERA, 22 strikeouts, and 15 walks.
Thompson returned to Memphis to begin the 2022 season. After starting ten games and going 2-2 with a 4.67 ERA, the Cardinals selected his contract and promoted him to the major leagues on June 3. Thompson became the first Cardinals player to wear uniform number 57 since the death of Darryl Kile during the 2002 season. He made his MLB debut that day at Wrigley Field versus the Chicago Cubs, throwing four innings in relief, giving up one run, three hits, and one walk while striking out three batters and recording a save. In 22 appearances for St. Louis during his rookie campaign, Thompson compiled a 1-1 record and 2.08 ERA with 27 strikeouts and one save across innings pitched.
Thompson made 25 appearances (9 starts) for the Cardinals in 2023, posting a 5-7 record and 4.48 ERA with 72 strikeouts across innings pitched. He pitched in 5 games (2 starts) for the club during the 2024 season, struggling to an 0-2 record and 9.53 ERA with 20 strikeouts over 17 innings of work.
Thompson suffered a tear in his lat muscle in spring training, and was transferred to the 60-day injured list on April 7, 2025.
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